Jefferson Scholars Foundation 2025 National Fellowship Program (up to $30,000)

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About Jefferson Scholars Foundation National Fellowship Program

The National Fellowship Program supports outstanding scholars at leading institutions of higher education who are completing dissertations in United States politics, with an emphasis on historical and institutional analyses of politics, public policy, and foreign relations. 

National Fellows have the opportunity to connect with and be a part of the Jefferson Scholars Foundation’s interdisciplinary community of world-class Scholars, Fellows, and Professors at the University of Virginia.

National Fellowship Program History

The National Fellowship Program was launched in 2000 with the sole purpose of identifying and funding outstanding scholars at top institutions across the country who are completing dissertations in U.S. history, politics, public policy, and foreign relations. 

Since its inception, the Program has helped launch the careers of more than 195 National Fellows. Over 150 former Fellows have been placed at major universities, with more than 130 holding tenure or tenure-track positions. Other Fellows have forged successful careers in public service, the nonprofit sector, government, and other public-facing professions. Fellows have published over 160 books with major presses, and they regularly place op-eds related to their research in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and leading digital media. 

In August 2016, recognizing the unique scholarly value of the National Fellowship Program and its deep connections to the University of Virginia, the Jefferson Scholars Foundation agreed to assume full responsibility for funding, nurturing and sustaining the Program, beginning in the 2017-18 academic year.

• Sponsor Organisation: Jefferson Scholars Foundation

Benefits of Jefferson Scholars Foundation National Fellowship Program

Under the leadership of the Jefferson Scholars Foundation, the National Fellowship Program:

• Funds up to four National Fellows per year to support dissertation research and writing
• Awards each Fellow a stipend of $30,000 in their first year; $30,000 should they qualify for a second year
• Pairs each Fellow with a renowned senior scholar in his or her field. These senior scholars serve as Mentors, suggesting relevant literature to frame the Fellows’ work, offering a critique of the Fellows’ writings, and providing general advice on research.
• Supports Fellows in assembling collaborative research networks focused on their area of expertise as it concerns broader policy-facing publics. In addition to the Fellow, who is responsible for leading and maintaining the network, and the Mentor, who will assist in recruiting collaborators, networks may include former Fellows, Mentors, and faculty as well as graduate students of the University of Virginia.
• Provides Fellows with training in skills relevant to leadership in academic research and institutions of higher education and policy-making more generally. Skills may include grant writing, data analytics, budgetary and statistical analysis, and public engagement (including social media curation, crafting op-eds and blogs, as well as expressing ideas through techniques employed by the digital humanities).
• Provides up to $5,000 in research funds.

Jefferson Scholars Foundation National Fellowship Program Requirements

An applicant must be a Ph.D. candidate who is either expecting to complete his or her dissertation by the conclusion of the Fellowship year or has outlined a detailed and workable two-year write-up plan that is persuasively documented. This is not a post-doctoral fellowship. Non-U.S. citizens are eligible to apply. Each Fellow will work with a Mentor to assemble a network of scholars focused on an area of her/his research expertise as it engages significant policy-facing questions. A meeting at U.Va., or the Hagley for the Galambos Fellow in the fall, will set the agenda for year-long collaboration and recruitment of additional network members, who may subsequently meet for virtual reading groups, workshops, conference panels, symposia, manuscript workshops, or similarly focused activities. Expenses for network events and activities are paid for by a dedicated budget for each Fellow.

Focused on-campus residential visits of up to two weeks at the Jefferson Scholars Foundation are required for all Fellows—with the exception of Galambos Fellows, who hold their residencies at the Hagley Library during the academic year but may also wish to spend up to two weeks at the Foundation for the purposes of building out their scholarly networks.

All Fellows will participate in a fall conference designed to host discussions about drafted portions of Fellow’s dissertation projects, design plans to build a scholarly network, and establish longer-term goals for scholarly and professional development. The spring conference is designed to workshop the Fellows’ scholarly research in collaboration with a gathering of junior and senior scholars, in anticipation of potential publication outcomes.  A workshop with a renowned university press editor concludes each spring conference. Regardless of residency, Fellows are expected to participate in and contribute to the interdisciplinary community of the Jefferson Scholars Foundation.

 

Note: Residency at the Hagley Library is required for the Louis Galambos National Fellowship in Business and Politics. National Fellows are expected to complete at least one extended (ca. 10-day) visit each year at the Foundation in Charlottesville, where they will consult with their Mentors and other research network participants. Galambos Fellows may elect to pursue their network activity at the Foundation in Charlottesville, at the Hagley Library in Wilmington, or some combination of the two, according to their preference. Subsequent network activity may take place at the Mentor’s institution, or special sessions of academic meetings (symposia, academic conferences, etc.). All Fellows, whether residing at the Hagley or visiting the Foundation, will participate in summer boot camps to cultivate advanced leadership skills.

Application Date and Process

• Click on the link to the application website to apply.

Materials

The application consists of the following materials and must conform to the stated word or page limits:

• Applicant information sheet
• Project description (1,200 words) - describe your dissertation or book, state the thesis, explain how it contributes to or revises existing scholarship, and how or why you decided on this particular topic
• Research plan (500 words, maximum) - outline steps by which chapters or articles will be drafted, and/or readied for publication
• Network proposal (1,200 words, maximum) - identify scholars whose work is central to your own research agenda, with brief explanations of how they might fit into a working group that advances the links between their work and your ambitions for current and future work.
• Op-ed or blog post (750 words, maximum) - a sample of public engagement, for instance, an op-ed or blog post that applies a major finding from your research to a current public policy problem.
• A short statement of interest in professional development (500 words, maximum) which justifies new skills and competencies the applicant would like to cultivate during the Fellowship, with an explanation of why the requisite training would be likely to increase the impact of her/his scholarship and academic leadership.
• Bibliography (3 pages)
• Curriculum vitae (2 pages)
• Writing sample (40 pages, maximum) - selected sample should consist of one chapter from your dissertation with a one-page introduction that situates the chapter in the broader project OR an accepted/published journal article
• TWO letters of recommendation (one of which must be from your advisor). Letters of recommendation are initiated through the application process or may be sent to the Selection Committee at [email protected].

Application Deadline

01 February, 2025

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